Friday, 28 March 2014

Kenya tweaks Madrid income stream

Kenya is going to take a greater degree of control over the fees to which it is entitled in respect of international trade mark registrations that designate it. According to this morning's WIPO media release:

Madrid (Marks) Notification No. 202Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks

Declaration by the Republic of Kenya

The Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) presents his compliments and has the honor to refer to the deposit by the Government of the Republic of Kenya on March 26, 1998, of its instrument of accession to the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks, adopted at Madrid on June 27, 1989 ("Madrid Protocol (1989)"). Please see the Madrid (Marks) Notification No. 102, for ease of reference.

In this respect, the Director General of WIPO has the honor to notify that the Republic of Kenya deposited, on March 12, 2014, the following declaration:

- that in accordance with Article 8(7)(a) of the Madrid Protocol (1989), the Republic of Kenya, in connection with each international registration in which it is mentioned under Article 3ter of the said Protocol, and in connection with the renewal of any such international registration, wants to receive an individual fee, instead of a share in the revenue produced by the supplementary and complementary fees.

The said declaration will enter into force, with respect to the Republic of Kenya, on June 12, 2014.

This blogger doubts that this will make a great difference to Kenya's public revenues and spending habits: in 2013 the country received just 1,430 Madrid designations.